TEHRAN-Renowned Iranian filmmaker Asghar Farhadi has been selected as the president of the jury at the 15th Les Arcs Film Festival, due to be held in December in the world-famous ski resort of Les Arcs in the heart of the French Alps.

The two-time Oscar-winning director will lead the jury in choosing the best European film of this year’s edition of the festival, ISNA reported on Friday. 

Film director, screenwriter and producer Farhadi, 51, made his directorial debut with “Dancing in the Dust” in 2002. 

After the success of “About Elly” (2009), for which he won the Silver Bear for Best Director at the Berlinale, Farhadi gained international recognition and critical acclaim with “A Separation” (2011), receiving no less than 70 awards, including an Academy Award and a César for Best Foreign Film.

He then left Iran for France to shoot “The Past” (2013), which won Bérénice Bejo the Best Actress Award at the Cannes Film Festival in 2013.

He then returned to Iran to direct “The Salesman” (2016), which premiered in competition at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival, where the film won Best Screenplay and Best Actor (Shahab Hosseini). The film became Farhadi’s biggest success and earned him the second Academy Award of his career.

His latest film, A Hero (2021) won the Grand Prix at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival.

Les Arcs Film Festival is a major cultural event seeking to promote the diversity of European cinema and to discover the many talents of the continent.

Located in the heart of the Alps, in one of the most beautiful ski areas in the world, the festival is an opportunity to enjoy the first snow and film screenings throughout the day in the presence of directors and actors.

The Arcs Film Festival is also a socially committed festival, with social issues at the heart of its programming. Debates on gender equality and the ecological transition in cinema will be at the heart of the festival. 

This year, the Netherlands will be in the spotlight with films and talent from the Netherlands. The theme of this year's festival is "Cinema as Therapy: Mental Health, In Front of And Behind the Screen”.

With more than 100 films selected to be shown in different sections, the 15th Les Arcs Film Festival will be held from 16th to 23rd December 16 to 23.

SS/SAB